Jules Verne's science fiction novel Captain Grant's Children has a chapter called "Red Wolves", which describes a group of "red wolves" besieged in the Pampas, and it took a lot of effort to repel this group of "red wolves". There is also a passage dedicated to the "red wolf": the Indians call it "Aguala", a predator of the size of a large dog, with a fox-like head, cinnamon coat, and a line of black mane fluttering along the back. He is athletic and strong, and likes to live in swampy areas, often swimming and hunting aquatic animals. Individual red wolves are not terrible, but flocks of hungry wolves are different.
According to the description of the living area and appearance, this "red wolf" is based on the maned wolf living in South America, but the real maned wolf is very different from the description in the novel, and is basically demonized and enhanced. The maned wolf is not a beast, but a timid and gentle animal, they do not have the courage and strength to attack humans, but occasionally attack poultry. Moreover, maned wolves are not social animals and spend most of their time alone, and a maned wolf couple may live together briefly during the breeding season. But the most impressive thing about the maned wolf is its large legs.
The maned wolf is called aguara guazu (big fox) in Guarani and zorro rojizo (red fox) in Spanish. The maned wolf does resemble the common fox (red fox) in terms of head and coat color, but the four large black legs make it significantly different from the red fox, so the maned wolf is also jokingly called "the fox on stilts". The maned wolf is 67-110 cm tall at the shoulders, taller than leopards and cougars, and at the same level as the tiger lion, you can imagine how long its legs are. The maned wolf is mainly distributed in the Brazilian highlands, and its large long legs allow it to walk quickly in meadows and lowlands.
The maned wolf is the only extant species in the genus Canineidae, and it is far from the wolf and fox, the closest species to it is the Antarctic wolf (Fukushima wolf) that once lived in the Malvinas Islands and became extinct in 1876, and the closest extant species is the Serval Dog in north-central South America. However, the shape of the serval dog is diametrically opposed to that of the maned wolf, which is a small man with short legs and is social.
The maned wolf's large legs make it look a little weak, and somewhat similar to the cheetahs and serval cats in the feline family, the maned wolf's hardware is indeed somewhat backward, and it is at the bottom level in the canine family.
Some time ago, scientists measured the forelimb bones of 31 species of cats and 17 species of canines, set up 13 indicators and quantified, assuming that these animals weighed equally, with jaguars as the percentage standard. The tiger has an average score of 100.81 points, while the maned wolf has only 59.13 points, ranking first from the bottom, while the closest living species, the serval dog, has an average score of 92.29 points, the first in the canine family. That is to say, in the case of equal weight, the maned wolf can hardly beat any kind of canine.
Although the hardware is very weak, but the size of the maned wolf can not be underestimated, according to the current measured data, the maned wolf is undoubtedly the largest wild canine in South America, and even has the strength to become the second largest canine, second only to the wolf (including dogs).
For a long time, the two biggest favorites for the canine family are the African wild dog and the jackal, and the red wolf (not the "red wolf" mentioned earlier) also has a chance, but the red wolf is not yet able to determine whether it is a separate species, because of the small number and serious hybridization. Whether the Himalayan wolf is a separate species has also not been confirmed. The weight of the jackal is not as good as that of the African wild dog, but the weight of the maned wolf is comparable to that of the African wild dog, and there is a strength to compete for the second oldest in the canine family, but the fame is always ignored.
The average weight of the maned wolf can reach 24.4 kg in combination with males, and the average weight of 29 kg in males alone, even for sick and weak individuals, can reach an average of 23.6 kg. Moreover, the large individuals of the maned wolf are also outstanding, and many captive male maned wolves can grow to more than 30 kilograms, and maned wolves of more than 30 kilograms have been found in the wild.
30 kg males and 35 kg females were found in the northern coastal areas of Rio de Janeiro between 2014 and 2015.
A 32-kilogram male mane wolf was caught in Divenopolis in 2014 and stole at least 30 domestic chickens.
A 27 kg female was captured in Uberlandia in 2016.
Let's take a look at the weight of African wild dogs and jackals.
African wild dogs besiege spotted hyenas
African wild dogs weigh in the range from 18-36 kg, African wild dogs in Kruger, South Africa, average 28 kg for males and range from 25.5-34.5 kg, and females for an average of 24 kg. African wild dogs in East Africa average 21 kg for males and 18 kg for females.
jackal
The average male of India is 16.5 kg, and the average of females is 16.6 kg; the average of jackals in southern China is only 11.5 kg; the average of Jackals in Thailand is 16 kg. Jackals can grow up to about 25 kg.
It can be seen that the weight of the maned wolf is larger than that of the jackal, which is comparable to the African wild dog. However, the combat effectiveness of the maned wolf is far from that of these two canines. African wild dogs have been recorded in the killing of elderly male lions and lionesses, and jackals have been rumored to have killed Bengal tigers, but the maned wolf has a mediocre record, has been hunted by mountain lions, and is threatened by domestic fierce dogs. The reason is not only that the hardware is not good, but its eating habits are also plant-based and not aggressive.
Studies in Brazil have shown that the proportion of maned wolves in various regions is between 44.6% and 59.8%, and the favorite food is a solanaceous plant called Solanum lycocarpum, which looks like a tomato and can account for more than 32% of the maned wolf's food, so this plant is also called "wolf fruit".
The proportion of meat eaten by maned wolves in each region ranges from 40.3% to 55.4%, of which small animals are the main ones, and rodents and marsupials are the highest.
Captive manes eat a variety of fruits, dog food, mice, beef, etc., and the maned wolves in Chinese zoos also eat nests.
Although the current IUCN rating of the maned wolf is near-threaten, the habitat of the maned wolf is gradually shrinking, and the number is also declining. The maned wolf, with the exception of occasional petty theft, poses no threat to humans, and hopes that this strange and elegant long leg will be able to live freely on the South American continent.